Coronavirus vaccine news highlights: WHO could approve AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine manufactured by SII in Jan or Feb

India started exporting coronavirus shots with a shipment to Bhutan. The ministry said "supplies under grant assistance" would be shipped to the Maldives, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar and the Seychelles, while Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Mauritius await regulatory clearances to receive the vaccines. In total 6.31 lakh healthcare workers have received Covid-19 vaccine shots through 11,660 sessions held till the evening of the fourth day of the immunisation drive. India has approved two vaccines — Bharat Biotech's Covaxin and Serum Institute of India's Covishield — for emergency use in the country. Frontline workers and healthcare workers are being vaccinated in the first phase. Stay tuned for latest updates.

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Pandemic central to overwhelming downside risks to LatAm economy: Fitch

Latin American economies will rebound this year from last year's recession but the risks to that outlook are almost all skewed to the downside, analysts at Fitch Ratings said on Wednesday, citing in particular the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Slower growth would also compromise government efforts to get deficits and debt back on a more sustainable, downward path, just as public pressure to spend in the face of the second wave of the virus grows, they warned.

Shelly Shetty, managing director for Sovereigns at Fitch, said that how the region weathers the second wave, the pace of vaccine distributions, the volume of shots to be rolled out and generally weak public health systems all bear monitoring.

"We don't see many upside risks ... (we see) several downside risks," Shetty said in an online presentation.

Peru will register the strongest growth in the region this year of more than 5%, while Brazil's economy will expand at a little over 3%, capped by an expected tightening of fiscal policy, she said.

The recovery should be supported by 8% growth in China, strong global commodity prices, continued accommodative domestic monetary policy, and favorable base effects, she said.

(Reuters)

WHO plans slew of Covid-19 vaccine approvals for global rollout

The World Health Organization (WHO) plans to approve several Covid-19 vaccines from Western and Chinese manufacturers in the coming weeks and months, an internal document seen by Reuters shows, as it aims for rapid rollouts in poorer countries.

COVAX, a global scheme co-led by the WHO, wants to deliver at least 2 billion COVID-19 doses across the world this year, with at least 1.3 billion going to poorer countries.

But it has so far struggled to secure enough shots due to a shortage of funds, while wealthy nations have booked large volumes of vaccines for themselves.

In the race to deploy shots, regulatory approvals are key to confirming the effectiveness and safety of vaccines, and to boosting output. But some poorer countries rely mostly on WHO authorisations as they have limited regulatory capacity.

The WHO is therefore "expediting" emergency approvals, according to a COVAX internal document, which cites data updated to Jan. 7.

The Covid-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and manufactured by the Serum Institute of India (SII) could be authorised by the WHO in January or February, the document says.

(Reuters)

COVID-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and manufactured by Serum Institute of India (SII) could be authorised by WHO in January or February: Reuters

Covid: Active cases near 2 lakh, 4.50 lakh people vaccinated

India reported 13,823 new Covid-19 infections and 16,988 discharges in the last 24 hours. The Covid-19 tally of the country has mounted to 1,05,95,660, which includes 1,97,201 active cases.

So far, 1,02,45,741 patients have been discharged from hospitals across the country. With 162 deaths in the last 24 hours, the country’s death toll stands at 1,52,718.

Health Ministry had reported that more than 4.50 lakh people have been vaccinated against Covid-19 till January 19.

Vaccines: 51 million given jabs worldwide

More than 51 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines have been given around the world, according to an AFP count on Wednesday.

Israel leads the vaccination race by far in terms of the percentage of population.

More than a quarter of its citizens have had shots, with 2.43 million vaccines given.

More than one in 20 have already received the second dose.

The country secured a huge stock of Pfizer jabs partly by pledging to share impact data quickly with the company.

One privacy specialist described the rollout as "the biggest experiment on humans in the 21st century".

Globally, 51,285,801 doses have been given in at least 61 countries or territories.

The rich countries of Europe, North America, the Gulf and China are hogging most of the vaccines so far.

(AFP)

A consignment of Covid-19 vaccine reaches Bhutan from India. "Another example of #NeighbourhoodFirst," tweets External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

Clinicians and volunteers prepare doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine in The Chapel of Saint Michael the Archangel inside Salisbury Cathedral which has been converted into a temporary vaccination centre in Salisbury, southwest England on Jan 20.

Credit: AFP Photo

Misinformation blamed for slow start to India's Covid-19 vaccine drive

"People are very scared. We can't force anyone to take the vaccine, it is voluntary," a doctor at a community health centre in neighbouring Haryana state, who asked to remain anonymous, told AFP.

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Telangana health worker dies after Covid-19 vaccine shot, death not due to it: Official

The worker was vaccinated at about 11.30 AM on Tuesday at a Primary Health Centre (PHC) in the district and he is said to have developed chest pain at around 2.30 AM on Wednesday.

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Hesitancy hurting pace of vaccination

The lack of a positive and enthusiastic response to inoculations by many people is a cause of concern.

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Over 4.50 lakh people vaccinated so far: Health Ministry

Health and Family Welfare Ministry of India informed that more than 4.50 lakh people have been vaccinated against Covid-19 till today.

“4,54,049 people have been vaccinated by Covid-19 vaccines till now. The active cases around 2 lakhs after seven months and the number is declining. After eight months, the daily number of deaths is less than 140,” said secretary Rajesh Bhushan.

He further said, “0.18% adverse events happened following immunisation and 0.002% of people were hospitalised following immunisation. These are fairly low and the lowest so far in the world in the first three days.”

Britain helps Kenya prepare for roll-out of Covid-19 vaccine

Britain said on Wednesday it was helping Kenya prepare to roll out the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Astrazeneca and Oxford University, as African nations race to ensure their populations are inoculated.

The East African nation has ordered 24 million doses of the vaccine and it expects delivery of the shots to start in the second week of February.

"It is for us not just our moral duty, but in the British national interest to see Kenyans vaccinated just as soon as we physically, logistically can," British foreign minister Dominic Raab told a news conference during a visit to Nairobi.

(Reuters)

An AN-32 aircraft arrived in Paro valley, ferrying Bhutan's first consignment of Covid-19 vaccine from India. Health Minister Dechen Wangmo will receive vaccines from Indian Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj in presence of PM Dr Lotay Tshering in a modest ceremony: Office of Bhutan PM

Covid-19 vaccine shots add to confusion over China's tests for travellers

A coronavirus antibody test that China has made mandatory for arriving travellers has provoked concerns over its effectiveness after one of a team of international health experts was briefly denied entry last week following a positive result.

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This is an example of the relationship between Nepal and India. This has been named 'Vaccine Maitri': Nepal Health Minister Hridayesh Tripathi

(ANI)

India to provide one million dosages of Covid-19 vaccine to Nepal. The vaccine will land in Kathmandu tomorrow: Nepal Health Minister Hridayesh Tripathi

(ANI)

With 80,686 inoculated so far, Karnataka leads nation in Covid-19 vaccination efforts

As many as 15,223 beneficiaries were vaccinated on day 4 of Covid vaccination on Tuesday, which was 47% of the target beneficiaries. Despite this, Karnataka till 6 pm on Tuesday had vaccinated 80,686 beneficiaries which is the highest in the country, according to figures put out by the Press Information Bureau.

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Oxford or Indian? No vaccinedilemma in Bengaluru so far

Bengaluru doctors are not yet caught in a dilemma about which of the two approved vaccines to take.

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Expert panel recommends permission for phase 1 clinical trial of Bharat Biotech's Covid-19 nasal vaccine

An expert panel of India's drug regulator CDSCO on Tuesday recommended granting permission for conducting thephase 1 clinical trial of an intranasal vaccine against Covid-19 developed by Bharat Biotech, official sources said.

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Total 6.31 lakh healthcare workers got Covid-19 vaccine jabs till Tuesday evening: Centre

In total 6.31 lakh healthcare workers have received Covid-19 vaccine jabs through 11,660 sessions held till the evening of the fourth day of the immunisation drive, according to a provisional report of the Union Health Ministry on Tuesday.

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Shun hesitancy, accept Covid-19 vaccine shots, doctors told

With Covid-19 vaccination numbers remaining far below the ideal level, health officials on Tuesday asked doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers to shun their vaccine hesitancy and accept the shots offered to them.

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Selfie stand, music, magazines: Authorities deploying measures to boost Covid-19 vaccine centre turnout

Faced with lower turnouts at Covid-19 vaccination centres, authorities here are trying to attract more and more people by devising interesting ways such as installing selfie stands, deploying counsellors, playing soothing music, and providing access to TV and magazines during the mandatory observation period of 30 minutes.

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India dispatches 1.5 lakh doses of Covishield vaccine as gift to Bhutan

As a good gesture of goodwill, India dispatchedthefirst consignment of 1.5 lakh dosesof Covishield vaccineto Thimphu in Bhutan from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai, in the wee hours on Wednesday.

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The concerns about adverse effects and serious problems, as of now, seem to be insignificant. Data show that we are in a comfortable situation and we would like to reassure you that the two Covid-19 vaccines are safe: Health ministry.